Pakistan Literature Festival kicks off in Sukkur

Sukkur: Sindh Caretaker Chief Minister Justice (Retd) Maqbool Baqar on Saturday inaugurated the two-day Pakistan Literature Festival 2023 Sukkur Chapter organised by the Arts Council of Pakistan Karachi (ACP) and Sukkur Institute of Business Administration (IBA Sukkur).

A one-minute silence was observed at the inaugural ceremony in memory of Fatima who was killed in Ranipur and the Palestinians killed due to the ongoing Israeli aggression.

The festival also condemned the killings of Sukkur-based journalist Jan Muhammad Mehr and IBA Sukkur academic Dr Ajmal Sawand. The participants also expressed sorrow over the death of IBA Sukkur founder Nisar Ahmed Siddiqui.

The opening ceremony was attended by ACP President Mohammad Ahmad Shah, IBA Sukkur Vice Chancellor Dr Asif Ahmed Sheikh, writer Noorul Huda Shah, actors Munawwar Saeed and Mustafa Qureshi, poet Kishwar Naheed, journalists Ghazi Salahuddin and Mazhar Abbas, District Council Sukkur Chairman Syed Kamil Haider Shah, Arts Council Sukkur President Mumtaz Bukhari and Sukkur Mayor Arslan Islam Sheikh among others.

The keynote speeches were delivered by scholar Dr Jafar Ahmed and Naseer Ahmed Memon.

Addressing the ceremony, the CM said the Pakistan Literature Festival Sukkur was proof of the enduring spirit of our nation. He thanked the ACP for inviting him to the opening ceremony of the event, saying that the threads of culture and literature together formed our national identity.

He added that the ACP was working tirelessly to highlight and preserve the cultural heritage. He said the Pakistan Literature Festival was a beautiful bouquet of national and regional languages, highlighting the dynamic cultural and literary tradition of Sukkur.

Justice (retd) Baqar said ideas, imagination and diverse voices were harmonised in such cultural events. He added that at present, when the nation was facing internal and external challenges, such recreational activities were necessary. “Today, let us foster a sense of unity through shared cultural activities,” he said.

The ACP president told the event that Sukkur was the greenest region of Sindh during the time of Partition. He added that Sindh was the land of Sheikh Ayaz and Sachal Samast.

He said people could be connected through cultural activities and the ACP had been focusing on the youth to make them aware of their culture. Literature and dance was not obscenity but a breath of fresh air for society, he remarked.

The IBA Sukkur VC said the two-day festival would become a memorable day in the history of Sukkur. He congratulated the entire team of the ACP for organising the event.

In his keynote address, Memon said the Pakistan Literature Festival was a wonderful event. He called for taking our economy and the youth forward. If we wanted Sindh to develop, we needed to connect with Sindh, he added.

In the other keynote speech, Dr Ahmad said he felt feel very happy when he saw girls reading in Sindh.

He called for removing restrictions to girls’ education so that they could play an important role in the development of the country.